Arts & Entertainment
Calendar: Oct. 14
Concerts, parties, support groups and more through Oct. 20
The Martin Luther King Memorial dedication has been rescheduled for this weekend after being derailed by Hurricane Irene. (Blade photo by Michael Key)
TODAY (Friday)
The Latino GLBT History Project is hosting the sixth annual LGBT Heritage Reception tonight at the Human Rights Campaign Equality Forum (1640 Rhode Island Ave., N.W.) from 6 to 8 p.m. The reception, to commemorate Hispanic Heritage Month and LGBT History Month, will feature a bilingual historical exhibition on Latino LGBT activism in D.C. over the last 30 years. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton speak. There is a suggested donation of $5.
NSO Pops present “Some Enchanted Evening: The Music of Rodgers and Hammerstein” tonight at 8 p.m. at the Kennedy Center (2700 F St., N.W.). The program includes songs like “Surrey with the Fringe on Top,” “Shall We Dance?” and more. Tickets range from $20 to $85 and can be purchased online at kennedy-center.org.
Touchstone Gallery (901 New York Ave., N.W.) has two exhibits, “Recent Paintings: Scapes,” featuring expressionistic paintings by Steve Alderton and “Clouded Leopard Labyrinth” which is a mixed media installation by Leslie Johnston, that will be on display through Oct. 30. The gallery is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The Lodge (21614 National Pike) in Boonsboro presents “Booytlicious” a drag king show featuring Butch Kelly, Papa Woody, Busta Hymein, Ben N. Cider and Seymour Snatch. Lady DJ Beloved will be spinning. There is a $3 cover before 11 p.m. and $5 after.
Lesbian singer/songwriter Jeanne Mackey will be performing “Drop the Knight: A Memoir-in-Song” tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the Takoma Park Community Center (7500 Maple Ave.). There is a suggested donation of $10 to $15.
Saturday, Oct. 15
Burgundy Crescent Volunteers will be working with the Neighborhood Farm Initiative today from 9 to 11 a.m. Volunteers will be weeding, planting and digging at a site near the Fort Totten Metro. Directions to the lot and more information can be found online at burgundycrescent.org.
Busboys & Poets is having its monthly youth open mic tonight at 5 p.m. in the Cullen room at its 5th and K streets location (1025 5th St., N.W.). The event will be co-hosted by Jonathan Tucket, a D.C. Youth Slam Team coach and Nichita Mason, a high school senior from Washington Math Science Technology High School. All people under 20 are encouraged to share their work. For more informaiton, e-mail [email protected].
Mixtape D.C. is tonight the Black Cat (1811 14th St., N.W.) from 9:30 p.m. to 2:15 a.m. Mixtape is a dance party for queer music lovers and their pals that features DJs Shea Van Horn and Matt Bailer playing an eclectic mix of electro, alt-pop, indie rock, house, disco, new wave and anything else danceable. There is a $10 cover for this all ages event.
Green Lantern is hosting a black-and-white underwear party tonight from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. featuring WET lube wrestling and a best booty contest. DJ Ace D.C. will be providing music.
Comedian Paula Poundstone will be performing at the Birchmere (3701 Mt. Vernon Ave.) in Alexandria, tonight at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $39.50 and can be purchased online at ticketmaster.com.
Sunday, Oct. 16
Zoom Urban Lesbian Excursions is taking a trip to the 31st annual Pumpkin Festival at Butler’s Orchard (22200 Davis Mill Rd.) in Germantown today at 1 p.m. Entrance to the festival is $10 and includes various attractions. RSVP online at phatgirlchic.com/zoom as the fee will be collected at the festival.
The D.C. Ice Breakers, Burgundy Crescent Volunteers and The Gay District are having their first ever “Men’s Singles Party with Board Games” night at 4141 N. Henderson Rd., in Arlington from 6 to 9 p.m. This is a BYO party and no RSVP is required.
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial dedication has been rescheduled for today starting at 8 a.m. The ceremonial dedication will happen at 11 a.m. and President Barack Obama will deliver the dedication address. Some of the other program participants include D.C. mayor, Vincent Gray, Jennifer Holliday and Aretha Franklin.
Monday, Oct. 17
The Youth Working Group, a gathering of people who are committed to impacting the lives of D.C. area youth, will be meeting tonight at the D.C. Center (1318 U St., N.W.) at 6 p.m. Capital Area AIDS Prevention Effort is also having its monthly meeting at the Center from 7 to 9 p.m.
WEAVE, a support group for LGBT survivors of intimate partner violence/abuse will be meeting from 7 to 8 p.m. at the Lighthouse Center for Healing (5321 First Place, N.E.). For more information and to register, call 202-280-6391.
Gayyim D.C., a social group for Jewish GBT men, is organizing a group to see the film, “Mary Lou” at the Israeli Embassy tonight at 7:30 p.m. To RSVP, contact [email protected].
Tuesday, Oct.18
The Leukemia and Lymphona Society’s Team in Training is having a fundraiser at Nellie’s (900 U St., N.W.) tonight 5 p.m. Team in Training is a program that trains people to complete endurance events while raising money to fund blood cancer research and provide patient services for those battling the disease.
Cameron Mackintosh presents a new 25th anniversary production of “Les Miserables” at the Kennedy Center (2700 F St., N.W.) tonight at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from $39 to $155 and can be purchased online at kennedy-center.org.
Wednesday, Oct. 19
The D.C. Ice Breakers will be having its monthly skate and social tonight. The group will be skating at Kettler Capitals Iceplex (627 N. Glebe Rd.) in Arlington from 8:15 to 9:15 p.m. then they’ll hit a local bar for a social hour. Skating is $8 and skate rentals are $3.
Busboys & Poets presents “Who does Kalup Linzy this he is?,” at its 14th and V streets location (2021 14th St., N.W.) tonight at 7 p.m. Linzy is a gender-bending performance artist whose low-fi productions feature self-styled heroines with references to soap operas, pop-music and tragic fame. This performance is in conjunction with the exhibit, “30 Americans” at the Corcoran Gallery of Art.
The D.C. Log Cabin Republicans have their October general meeting tonight from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at The Camden Roosevelt (2101 16th St., N.W.). This month will feature special guest, Don Blanchon, Executive Director of Whitman-Walker Health as he discusses the state of Whitman-Walker Health and the latest information about the AIDS Walk. For more information, visit dclogcabin.org.
The Tom Davoren Social Bridge Club meets at 7:30 p.m, at the Dignity Center (721 8th St., S.E.) across from Marine Barracks, for social bridge. No partner is needed. For more informaiton, visit lambdabridge.com and click on “Social Bridge in Washington.”
Thursday, Oct. 20
The D.C. Lambda Squares are having their club night from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the National City Christian Church (5 Thomas Circle, N.W.). This week will be plus with class-level mainstream. For more information, visit dclambdasquares.org.
Country music star LeAnn Rimes will be giving a special acoustic show at Riot Act Comedy Theater (801 E St., N.W.) at 8 p.m. to benefit her charity, “StandUp for Kids” which helps homeless and underprivileged youth. Tickets range from $20 to $50 and can be purchased online at riotactcomedy.com.
Team DC, the umbrella organization for LGBTQ-friendly sports teams and leagues in the D.C. area, held its annual Night of Champions Awards Gala on Saturday, April 20 at the Hilton National Mall. The organization gave out scholarships to area LGBTQ student athletes as well as awards to the Different Drummers, Kelly Laczko of Duplex Diner, Stacy Smith of the Edmund Burke School, Bryan Frank of Triout, JC Adams of DCG Basketball and the DC Gay Flag Football League.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
The 2024 National Cannabis Festival was held at the Fields at RFK Stadium on April 19-20.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Covering the @NatlCannaFest at RFK Stadium for @WashBlade . Stop by the LGBTQ+ booth and pick up a paper if you are here. pic.twitter.com/is7hnsaPns
— Michael Patrick Key (@MichaelKeyWB) April 20, 2024
Theater
‘Amm(i)gone’ explores family, queerness, and faith
A ‘fully autobiographical’ work from out artist Adil Mansoor
‘Amm(i)gone’
Thorough May 12
Woolly Mammoth Theatre
641 D St., N.W.
$60-$70
Woollymammoth.net
“Fully and utterly autobiographical.” That’s how Adil Mansoor describes “Amm(i)gone,” his one-man work currently playing at Woolly Mammoth Theatre.
Both created and performed by out artist Mansoor, it’s his story about inviting his Pakistani mother to translate Sophocles’s Greek tragedy “Antigone” into Urdu. Throughout the journey, there’s an exploration of family, queerness, and faith,as well as references to teachings from the Quran, and audio conversations with his Muslim mother.
Mansoor, 38, grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and is now based in Pittsburgh where he’s a busy theater maker. He’s also the founding member of Pittsburgh’s Hatch Arts Collective and the former artistic director of Dreams of Hope, an LGBTQ youth arts organization.
WASHINGTON BLADE: What spurred you to create “Amm(i)gone”?
ADIL MANSOOR: I was reading a translation of “Antigone” a few years back and found myself emotionally overwhelmed. A Theban princess buries her brother knowing it will cost her, her own life. It’s about a person for whom all aspirations are in the afterlife. And what does that do to the living when all of your hopes and dreams have to be reserved for the afterlife?
I found grant funding to pay my mom to do the translation. I wanted to engage in learning. I wanted to share theater but especially this ancient tragedy. My mother appreciated the characters were struggling between loving one another and their beliefs.
BLADE: Are you more director than actor?
MANSOOR: I’m primarily a director with an MFA in directing from Carnegie Mellon. I wrote, directed, and performed in this show, and had been working on it for four years. I’ve done different versions including Zoom. Woolly’s is a new production with the same team who’ve been involved since the beginning.
I love solo performance. I’ve produced and now teach solo performance and believe in its power. And I definitely lean toward “performance” and I haven’t “acted” since I was in college. I feel good on stage. I was a tour guide and do a lot of public speaking. I enjoy the attention.
BLADE: Describe your mom.
MANSOOR: My mom is a wonderfully devout Muslim, single mother, social worker who discovered my queerness on Google. And she prays for me.
She and I are similar, the way we look at things, the way we laugh. But different too. And those are among the questions I ask in this show. Our relationship is both beautiful and complicated.
BLADE: So, you weren’t exactly hiding your sexuality?
MANSOOR: In my mid-20s, I took time to talk with friends about our being queer with relation to our careers. My sexuality is essential to the work. As the artistic director at Dreams of Hope, part of the work was to model what it means to be public. If I’m in a room with queer and trans teenagers, part of what I’m doing is modeling queer adulthood. The way they see me in the world is part of what I’m putting out there. And I want that to be expansive and full.
So much of my work involves fundraising and being a face in schools. Being out is about making safe space for queer young folks.
BLADE: Have you encountered much Islamophobia?
MANSOOR: When 9/11 happened, I was a sophomore in high school, so yes. I faced a lot then and now. I’ve been egged on the street in the last four months. I see it in the classroom. It shows up in all sorts of ways.
BLADE: What prompted you to lead your creative life in Pittsburgh?
MANSOOR: I’ve been here for 14 years. I breathe with ease in Pittsburgh. The hills and the valleys and the rust of the city do something to me. It’s beautiful, it’ affordable, and there is support for local artists. There’s a lot of opportunity.
Still, the plan was to move to New York in September of 2020 but that was cancelled. Then the pandemic showed me that I could live in Pittsburgh and still have a nationally viable career.
BLADE: What are you trying to achieve with “Amm(i)gone”?
MANSOOR: What I’m sharing in the show is so very specific but I hear people from other backgrounds say I totally see my mom in that. My partner is Catholic and we share so much in relation to this.
I hope the work is embracing the fullness of queerness and how means so many things. And I hope the show makes audiences want to call their parents or squeeze their partners.
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